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+1...out of print and hard to find, I read it cover to cover while sitting on the floor of the Mountaineers' Library years ago. Classic for Alaskan alpinism! also: -In the Shadow of Denali, Jonathan Waterman -Enduring Patagonia, Greg Crouch

Oops...yes...thank you, that is what I meant.

Mark, I've always used 5/16" or 7/16" tubular, it's not as durable so you'll have to replace it more often, but it works for bodyweight which is what you're using it for. I've also used 1/2" supertape but it's bulkier. Here's a hint for avoiding the problem of it touching the rock. Before you sling it the hook, tie a short pre-cut loop with a fat knot (this works better with supertape). Then push a bight opposite the knot through the hole from the inside (rock side) so the knot jams against the hook and doesn't have to loop around the entire hook. All the loop will be outside the hook, facing you. Keep the total loop diameter to about 3" or less.

Sol- I can't disagree with anything you wrote here. But I guess to clarify my opinion, I'm not saying it would be better with bolts vs. without. To be honest, I confess that the route was, for us, spicy enough that I am psyched to have done it in it's current state. It's a lot easier for me from the position of having done it already, to shrug my shoulders about added bolts. Having said that, I do think that what Matt is proposing would do little to remove the excitement of the various pitches while it would most certainly remove what I recall being a definite detraction of the route, which was at least one belay anchor that was quite poor and with a runout off of it to boot, with a potential for a huge factor 2 onto an rp nest that is the only thing keeping the team from a 50 meter plunge to the moat. It's been so long since I did it, but I seem to recall that maybe there was another belay that also wasn't so reassuring. As for the rap line...the alpinist in me admittedly cringes, but there's no denial from me that Joe and I, while on the route, said, "Matt should come back and bolt a rap line so we could just come and do these first five...". I might also say that the climbing was good enough on those pitches that I'd come do it again if there were rap anchors. The upper pitches were unenjoyable enough that I wouldn't otherwise go back. I've never drilled a bolt in my life and also never taken a strong stand on the issue aside from bolts near cracks, etc. It's Matt's prerogative in the end and I support whatever he decides to do with it. Either way, it is a great route that deserves more traffic. In it's current state, it's a route for solid 5.10 climbers who are really good at fiddling in gear in improbable places.

Hey Matt- My name is Mark Westman. I don't know if you remember, but in August of 1998, Joe Puryear and I met you at Colchuck Lake in the dark on our way to this route- you were taking your teenage son to Prusik Peak. You gave us some nice beta, made more interesting as we were concerned by the Beckey description mentioning kb's for belays and such and we hadn't been able to find any additional beta on the route up to that time. Joe even joked as we approached you in the woods that "it's probably Matt Christensen going to retro bolt the Boving Route...". Anyway, great route and good work on it way back when. My two cents- while I thought the route was able to be climbed safely enough without any bolts, if there was one place for them, it would be not on any pitch, but at the belay stance at the top of pitch 1. That belay took me a long time to rig safely with tiny gear, and there was a bit of a runout off it for the next pitch. Definitely heads up there- the kb placements were filled with broken off old pitons so it was manky brass nuts and micro cams. Funny, I recall vividly that Joe and I both agreed that if you had ever decided to come back and bolt a rap line for doing just the first five pitches it would have been pretty cool, for as you mentioned, after that, the climbing isn't very good. Thanks for the memories- MW

I haven't done it, so I couldn't recommend it. It's on the list though- but as pink said it's been called Do Not Bother and Desperately Needs Bolts, and one experienced party failed a 4 piece anchor with a factor 2 fall and took the 1000 foot ride. I've also heard some claim "oh it's not that bad". It does look cool.

Hotline on Elephant Rock- you can yard and tension through the crux 11d/12a on the 2nd pitch if need be to get to THE handcrack. Chouinard/Herbert on Sentinel Kor/Beck on middle cath. (just the first 5p) North buttress of Middle- not the DNB, the Harding. Kind loose with a couple shitty belays but, 'adventurous', and long. Definitely second Beggars Buttress on Lower Cathedral- a touch harder than Rostrum and not as clean but the final headwall is sweet.

I've been using Sportiva Nupstes for the past five years- they are warm and climb technical ground well. They are worn out though and I just got a pair of Spantiks for this season. Every seems to love theirs; I'll find out. For the Ruth in June-July, something like Trango ice or Trango Extreme would be more than adequate.

I might add that the shovel blade on Hunter saved our life: we were caught on the final ice face in a full on blizzard with high winds and heavy snow, and spent all night climbing upward into the storm in the dim twilight, gunning for the top and the hope of digging snowcave behind the cornice, which we thankfully were able to do.

Dane- For the Diamond, I wore Patagonia Stretch Element pants and expedition weight capilene bottoms. On top, I wore 2 midweight capilene tops and an ultralight Montbell shell jacket (can't recall the model, really light but also not very durable, it's full of holes now). For insulation, I brought a hoodless puffball jacket and a Cloudveil hooded Serendipity (or Synchronicity? something like that) belay jacket which is quite a bit heavier than the puffball. Both of those are synthetic. I brought two pairs of BD Verglas gloves, which I pre-seam gripped to increase water proofing (I've since switched to the Punisher and the Glissade, which are BDry'd and officially 'waterproof') and I brought a pair of overmitts made by RBH Designs that I borrowed from Jedi at 14K- I had brought some old, ghetto, heavy OR overmitts originally; these not only did not pass the Colin weight test, they were beat up and over 10 years old. I also brought an R1 balaclava and a pair of Bugz goggles as a sunglasses/bad weather backup. The bivi gear was a prototype Feathered Friends two person bag that Colin designed (<2lbs), 1 1/2 pre-cut Evozote pads that fit inside the bag, a BD Firstlight tent, and a jetboil w about 3 days of fuel supply. The Moonflower clothes were essentially the same thing, except that instead of the expedition weight bottoms I think I wore a Feathered Friends "husky suit", which is a one piece fleece salopette with no sleeves. It was generally MUCH colder on Hunter being it is north facing and that it was early May. The bivi gear here was two 10F sleeping bags, two ultralight bivi sacks, two pads, an XGK stove, small titaneum pot, the shovel blade, and the guide's tarp. We only bivied once, but to tell you the truth, if I did it again I would single push- the bivi was REALLY cold and uncomfortable. I think it definitely made us more tired overall for the upper part of the route than if we'd just been lighter and continued climbing. And while the packs weren't that heavy, on terrain that steep, you really notice every ounce.

Hey Guys, A few thoughts after reading through all this: -Dane makes a great point in mentioning that some of these tactics and gear choices are not *necessarily* recommended. Reading through Dane's notes on Colin's lecture, I would have to say that my views on the items mentioned are largely similar to Colin's; while I certainly credit my partnership with Colin with having influenced many of my values, overall I've come to the point I am at through many years of careful experimentation, and yes, a few mistakes. I'm a cautious and calculating person by nature so thankfully the mistakes I have made have had enough backup built in to not have been catastrophic, and probably a few times I just got lucky. The point being, it is important for climbers who aspire to the big routes to dare to venture outside of their comfort zone and find out what works and what doesn't, but at the same time one must be pragmatic at all times and be WILLING TO FAIL on the climb and try again some other time with a better tactic. You cannot simply copy someone else's tactics and gear list; the apprenticeship is a long, step by step process, and if you look at Colin's progression in the sport closely you will see that he as much as anyone has adhered to the concept of apprenticeship. People assume that because he is young that he was "going for it", but the fact is he started climbing (alpine!) at age 10. He wasn't doing big routes until his late teens/early 20's, and up to that time he logged more time in the mountains than many do in their lifetime. He and I got our starts similarly in that I also started climbing by going alpine climbing- that's all I did for the first 8 or so years, before I realized the limitations my lack of technical skill were imposing on what routes I could do, and so I started working more on those aspects. I only wished that like him I had started climbing at a much earlier age (I started at age 22, though with a entire childhood of backpacking and class-2-3 scrambling beforehand). These days I spend far more time during the year working technical skills, in preparation for a relatively few, serious alpine missions. There has to be insight with each decision you make. I have done things where I felt uncertainty and fear, but insight is the inner voice that separates phantom fear versus a clear and present hazard. It's a fine line, but this voice is what you need to listen to above all else. It took me a long time to recognize much of my fear as a simple fear of being uncomfortable, one which caused me to take far more stuff than I actually needed and in fact made the effort much more arduous. In fact you might say it actually increased the discomfort, prolonging the climb's duration and increasing fatigue due to the heavier packs. Having said all that, a few stories and points worth mentioning: -Bivis: If you're going to bring bivi gear, make sure it allows you to sleep. Half-assed 'bivi' setups that result in a long night of cold shivering are a waste of weight as they are not fulfilling their function, and will sabotage your climb by making you doubly-tired. If you're going to set yourself up to suffer, might as well go light and single push it instead. Or, plan on sleeping during the day. -Be diligent and disciplined about taking brew stops, especially on single push efforts. Also, do not brew up for too long- keep it to 2 hours or less. Sitting around for four hours will only build up lactic acid and instead of feeling refreshed and recharged, you'll be sluggish and lethargic. Keep the flow going. -Cooking in your tent: While I don't "recommend" it, I've done this for a very long time. Colin's suggestions are exactly right. You have to be on it, sitting up, paying attention at all times. If you do this, it works. I like to stick my nose out the tent door and breathe periodically, keep the flap open, etc. Long ago, I thought cooking inside was forbidden; I was watching my friend Jeff Benowitz pack for a trip and the subject came up...said I, "you cook in your tent?" Jeff, already a vet of many Alaska climbs, replied quizzically, "like...you'd...cook anywhere else?!?" Unlike Colin, I do use white gas stoves occasionally and these are definitely a LOT more hazardous used inside, mainly for reasons of fire. Best to light them outside first for this reason. But they sure warm up the tent! :)One further problem to keep in mind, when the weather is bad outside, and it's cold as in Alaska, cooking in your tent will often result in the tent's interior becoming coated in ice. While acclimatizing on Denali's south buttress prior to an ascent of the Isis Face in 2008, this happened to us the first night. The tent became a frozen mess and not very useful. Thereafter, we dug snow caves the rest of this portion of the trip, which actually worked out nicely since the weather was very cold and unsettled. On that note, I really like snowcaves. If you put in the effort to make one, put in the extra time to make it large, build shelves and get comfy. They are quiet, warmer (but never really 'warm', either), and a lot better than a frozen, wet tent flapping violently in the wind. If I know I'm going to be caving it and not bringing a tent, I might bring along a 5' x 8' Integral Designs Guide's Tarp (very light parachute material) and I use it to close off the door of the cave to keep out spindrift. If it's an emergency cave and you have a tent, use the tent for the same purpose. The Guide's Tarp is a nice thing to have on steep routes where a tent isn't practical, like the north buttress of Hunter. We chopped a long ledge, laid head to head, and stretched the tarp over our upper bodies to keep the spindrift out of our faces and sleeping bags (though the angled rock corner above our ledge kind of sabotaged this, the principle remains sound...). Ropes: Colin and I used an 8.8 mm half rope and no tag line for the Denali Diamond. I have to admit it felt a bit 'out there' starting up this route, very committing. On the other hand, at some point on a route this big, even with a tag line you are pretty committed either way. In retrospect, it was really nice to not be carrying a second rope, our packs were quite manageable. As for using a half rope...I don't recommend this, it was just our choice. I might not even choose to do that again, but when doing this you pretty much aren't taking undue chances for whippers. Colin yarded on gear on the very difficult crux pitch, and we ensured the use of long runners on wandering pitches. I used a much thicker single line on both the Cassin and the Moonflower and chopped it both times. All experimentation aside, if a route involves much rock climbing my recommendation is a sturdy single line in the low to mid 9's, especially if the descent involves a lot of rappels. I think for the Diamond as we anticipated walking off the west buttress, this factored into our decision, but again I don't recommend this to others. Do what makes sense for you. -Shovels: I *almost* always take an old chouinard spade, without the handle, on climbs. I've dug entire snow caves with this little gem and it doesn't weigh much. I say almost, as Colin and I didn't take a shovel on the Diamond. It seemed at first unwise, but the more I thought about it, there really isn't any place on the route we could have dug a cave- the lower half is steep mixed climbing, the upper half shallow snow over ice. the only place might have been on the summit plateau area if we got marooned in a cloud cap. But even then, we felt we could make do with our adzes on our axes. On that note, I like having an adze in the alpine. In 2005, Eamonn Walsh and I did a new route on Mt. Grosvenor, in the Ruth, a 4400' route we called Once Were Warriors. We brought only belay jackets; no stove, no shovel, no tent, no bags. The lack of a shovel (and everything else!) we nearly came to regret, as we were caught on the summit at 8 PM (end of March, still gets totally dark for 10 hours) in a major whiteout. We were forced to descend the Johnson-Grosvenor couloir in the dark in a storm, barely locating the top of it and then being hit by continuous avalanches in the gully. It was gripping and I think if we had had a shovel we might have chosen to dig a cave up high and wait it out. It cleared in the middle of the night as it turned out, but we felt forced to descend into a very bad place due to a total lack of options. I vowed I would never go without a shovel again in the Alaska Range, but the Diamond was one exception I could justify. -Revisiting the glove issue: basically, my take on it, fed by my own bias from my poorly functioning fingers, is that an extra set of gloves simply does not weigh enough to slow you down and jeopardize the climb. Conversely, soaking your only pair of gloves on a big rig (or even a smaller route)- a very real possibility on most winter routes- and freezing your fingers, is a clear and present hazard that not only jeopardizes the climb and the team's safety, but losing your fingers and not being able to go rock climbing anymore would really suck. It's not worth it to me. I will always take a spare. -Other clothing thoughts- the main thing is, how much do you REALLY need? When Colin and I climbed Fitzroy, he talked me out of bringing a fat belay jacket and instead bringing a normal, unhooded Patagonia puffball as my only insulated jacket. Given that I wore it all day while climbing, I was a little apprehensive of what it would be like if the weather turned bad, but fortunately it never did. Looking back, it was nice having a lighter setup and it allowed us to get up and down in an efficient, controlled, day climb. Earlier, when we attempted the Supercouloir, I convinced Colin to bring a spare set of gloves, given the significant amount of snow climbing at the start and the reasonable likelihood of the weather turning poor being in Patagonia. The route was in poor shape and we eventually switched routes to climb the Franco-Argentine, and for this we only took one set of gloves each, as the type of climbing was different, almost all rock. So there's no hard and fast rule, every climb is custom decisions, and you and your partner should feel obligated to evaluate each other's system, and be in synch. Almost always, you can do with much less than you think, but it doesn't mean you never, or always, leave yourself some room for backup. Often, one's confidence in the weather, or lack thereof, will help make that decision for you. Dane if you have any more questions, fire away. Happy climbing, dudes

Regarding down vs. synthetic belay jackets, another thing to consider is the spindrift factor...steep and sustained routes- like all of the routes on Hunter's north buttress- tend to dump even during good weather. Synthetics are a much better choice on such routes for this reason, in my opinion. Also, things like gloves definitely vary from person to person, speaking for myself, anyway. I've never gotten full-on frostbite but after many Alaska seasons my fingers don't work so well anymore and get cold even in mild conditions. I always carry a spare set and on a multi day climb I might even carry 2 extra, depending on the type of climbing and likelihood of them getting soaked (like, spindrifty routes...) as well as whether I have a tent and therefore if it's likely the wet pair could be dried out. Long ago I never used hand warmers but these days they are standard equipment for me. Thanks for posting this. I've benefitted significantly from climbing with Colin. Something to note also is that his lack of "epics", especially considering the scale of the objectives he is taking on, is not accidental. Another skill is his willingness to wait for the right weather, conditions, and psyche. He does nothing out of impulse. This trait is as important as any piece of gear.

Looks like a great trip, Wayne. Glad conditions stayed doable! I was up from 2/18-3/4 and conditions were really good for almost everything, except south facing stuff. Pretty cool you were able to mix it up with a day at Yam, not to mention getting out with the Colonel.

Alasdair- I'm almost certain that photo is the southwest face of Kahiltna Queen, the upper part of the prominent ridge is the finish to the standard route. The whole ridge has been climbed also.

Dave B. and I climbed New York Gully yesterday (1/31). -There was fairly solid snow covering the traverse pitches to the main ramp. Good warm up. -The first 2 ramp pitches had an occasional veneer of ice but nothing really that could be swung into, not really any neve to speak of, and plenty of loose snow to clear off the rock, which made locating gear placements challenging. The moss sticks are the bomb. The final ramp pitch (the one that leads to the shoulder below the hand crack), which had a lot of ice on it when I climbed the route in 2006, had thin (unprotectable) ice and in this condition it felt steeper and more difficult than before. The last pitch, above the hand crack, didn't have much snow on it and had great moss sticks! -ice screws can stay at home. If someone gets it before it snows again, it might be a touch easier now with all the snow cleared off; trying to spot the next possible protection was the crux. A hard freeze would likely make the route easier, as the snow up there was pretty moist. Have fun.

Bump- Nupstes and Trango Ice's are still here for sale.

I've climbed it twice, most recently last spring- here's a shot from last May: We climbed the left side in the photo- it was genuinely overhanging ice for 5 meters, and one of the pumpiest pitches I have climbed in a long time. In 2006, we climbed to the right, past the plates of rock. It was thin and sketchy, like M5R. In a really fat year, the right side would probably feel like WI4. The left side this spring I thought felt like solid grade 5. Not sure who thought it was grade 4 last year but that makes me feel weak. On the other hand, it seems that many parties climb the route to that pitch and then bail. I think last year only one or two other parties topped out. There is a WI4 pitch two pitches above this one, otherwise the rest of the route is grade 2 and 3.

Doesn't seem like much of a "jump" on the day's trek. Is it logical to to hike another 1/2 day or so to a suitable location? I have seen people bivi on the top of Disappointment Cleaver, there is a relatively level shelf up there. It is however very exposed not only to wind but it drops off steeply on both sides so you wouldn't want to walk around w/o crampons very far. Also, consider how your second day would go: it would be feasible to hike from Muir to I. Flats during the morning hours as rockfall hazard isn't so bad crossing Cathedral Gap and the Cowlitz is usually pretty safe as far as crevasses go. However that would put you moving up the Cleaver itself during the hot late morning hours. don't forget that another hazard on the DC is climbers above you knocking rocks down on top of you from the Cleaver. Anyway, if you were planning to bivi on top of the Cleaver (ca. 12,000') you would probably want to be leaving Muir very early in the morning. But honestly, I wouldn't bivi above Ingraham Flats. If you can handle getting to Muir in one day (4,600' vert.) then a the summit day from Ingraham Flats will go well. Another option is to climb the Emmons, and after bivying at Schurman, spend day two climbing to about 11,500-12,000' atop the "Corridor": there are really any number of places to bivi up there and that would give you the jump on the summit you were looking for. I think the Emmons is a much more scenic side of the mountain, personally...

The early start is especially important on the DC or any route that involves climbing beneath rock features- the rockfall danger is always something to which to pay heed, but beginning mid morning it substantially increases depending on temps and cloud cover, and by afternoon places like the traverse on/off the Dis. Cleaver can be a bonafide bowling alley. Also icefall danger in that same area is a serious concern any time of day or night. On the Emmons route rockfall is not an issue, but as noted above the crevasse hazards increase substantially as snowbridges begin to soften, and glopping of snow on crampons combined with fatigue is a hazard best avoided. All the objective hazards notwithstanding, I find slogging in the hot sun on glaciers to be far more fatiguing than getting up early. Grandpa- the next and only logical camp above Muir is Ingraham Flats, which is 1-2 hours past Muir. Depending on wind direction the Flats might actually be a tad less windy than Muir as it is somewhat protected from west winds by Cathedral Rocks and Gibraltar Rock. I'm not sure but there may be human waste barrels still being kept there also (I was a ranger on the mountain 1995-1999 and there were barrels back then). You could get by with a bivi sack if the weather is perfect, but a tent is nicer of course. If the wind/snow comes a bivi will suck. You'll want one with strong guy attachments because in summer the big problem you could face is the wind- I've seen 80+ mph winds at Muir and Schurman in every month of the summer season. If it's windy on your summit day, consider collapsing and stashing your tent while on your summit push- I've seen a lot of climbers return to find their tent long gone or totally shredded.

I wish I would have read this several months ago! thanks MtGuide! The hardest part of this process has been facing the denial of reality that I had to stop climbing for awhile. And now I'm really enjoying my cardio training in the meantime; use the time to take advantage of something else!

Hi Chad, It seems like we are living parallel lives- I was climbing rock outside consistently from late May through end of October. Around early July I started getting the medial version- basically, mild pain and inflammation around the "funny bone" area and just below. For the rest of the summer I would ice it twice a day, occasionally massage it, and take Ibuprofen. It never seemed to get worse, but it never really got any better, either. For the most part, thankfully, it didn't hurt while climbing (cracks or face) but it would be sore after climbing and frequently hurt while doing other things- I was doing carpentry during the weekdays and I'm guessing this also contributed. Everyday things like, for example, taking wet laundry out of the washer where I had to "bear hug" items were painful. Then when I got back from Yosemite beginning of November I started hitting the climbing gym really hard, bouldering. Now, it really started to hurt, and this time it started to hurt while climbing. Not good. I kept at it as long as I could but finally at the beginning of December I stopped gym climbing altogether because I felt I was going to make it chronic. In preparation for spring climbing in Alaska I started focusing on cardio and some weight training instead. A few weeks resting it along with several acupuncture treatments and some deep tissue massages, along with continued ice and heat treatments seemed to really help. I did a little desert climbing over the holidays and it felt pretty darn good. However, it did get a little sore at times and since then it just seems to be in a day to day state, despite no climbing at all for the last 2 1/2 weeks. It's definitely better but it feels fragile. I really want to get back in the gym but I can tell it will flare up again quickly if I do. Every case is different, but since this damn thing has occupied my mind for months now I have figured out a few things if not a cure, so here's some responses to your numbered questions that are based on my experience thusfar, your mileage may vary: 1)It should go without saying, but anything that is causing your elbow to hurt is probably something to eliminate from your workout. I have been including in my workouts (which are not just about my elbow issue...) doing the weight tied to a dowel and lowering the weight slowly, one crank at a time. I've been told this helps tendonitis and it tends to feel better after some initial soreness. I also ordered a "theraband flexbar" from Amazon, it is a large rubber dowel that does essentially the same thing. Dave Burdick found this article regarding this device, check this out: http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/08/25/phys-ed-an-easy-fix-for-tennis-elbow/ It doesn't seem that this thing has helped me that much, but then, I was using it while on a full on climbing trip in California for a month and then the gym climbing sessions probably undid every bit of good it might have been doing. 2) As long as what you do doesn't irritate it, it should be okay, but I wouldn't overdo it. Everyone seems to say rest is the best tonic. That leads me to answer--- 3) Gym climbing definitely screwed this thing up much worse for me, and quickly. As much as I want to go back in, I'm staying away until I'm sure it is healed. Everyone as well as my elbow was telling me to stop climbing, let it heal and focus on something else. I'm at the point where I feel like I could climb, but that it would likely come back. Given that it's January, seems like the more rest you give it the better, while focusing on non-irritating strength training. A lot of strong climbers assure that after a 6-12 week break it's likely you can come back quickly and even stronger. 6) I have found that heat makes it feel better than ice, and that frequency doesn't seem to matter with mine. 7) My wife is an LMP- she has been working on it. Surprisingly she found some bundled up tissue above the site (humerus side) that was knotted up badly, there was no pain in this specific area but when it released the pain on the opposite side of the joint decreased substantially. She cautions against doing cross fiber friction too frequently or when it is really inflamed. I've found that massage along the length of the forearm muscles and tendons is more doable but when it really hurts, leaving it alone and using heat/ice is a better bet. 8) I wish I knew! And for both of our sake I hope not too long. If you find anything new or have any breakthroughs of your own I'd love to hear about them. I'll do the same. Good luck!

Ditto that for Dragonfly; high potential but lots of lichen and crumbly feet. Has nothing on CBR west face. I haven't done either but have heard lots of good reviews of Solid Gold and Lady Godiva on Prusik- both are 11's I believe and supposed to be very good. Somebody mentioned north face of SEWS- is that the Yoder route? Looks pretty damn hard down low. The nearby Boving route has one 11a pitch but it's far from the route's best pitch.

I had successful trips to Patagonia (Poincenot, Torre de Media Luna) and Alaska (Colton/Leach on Huntington, and Mini-Moonflower), with standing on the true summit of Huntington marking the end of a long vendetta with that elusive summit going back 11 years and four seasons of attempts. Otherwise this year was about rock climbing and pushing grades. Enjoyed 3 trips to Squamish and 8 weekends at Index this summer. I changed my diet and lost 20 lbs since May, allowing me to redpoint a whole bunch of stuff that had eluded me thusfar, including the Sword and Slow Children. All in all I had 100 days in rock shoes in 2009, probably my most ever and psyched considering I worked more months than usual this year. Enjoyed two weeks in Red Rocks in the spring with my wife and a consortium of partners and finally got to climb Epinephrine. Climbed Positive Vibrations on The Incredible Hulk in September. It doesn't get better than that! Repeated the Passenger at WA Pass and a few other area classics. Enjoyed a week in Yosemite with my wife, including repeating Serenity Crack. Then with my buddies Rob and Sam repeated a bunch of stuff I had done before including Moratorium and Rostrum. Didn't send on Rostrum but it was a significant improvement on the last time and I was pleased with the summers efforts being noticeable. Unfortunately my health wasn't so good in the valley. I arrived with a common cold, and then see below... Didn't climb much ice in 09 but explored some waterfalls in Hunter Creek, outside of Palmer, Alaska. The lowlight of the year was getting H1N1 in Yosemite and having the last week of my trip KO'd, and a nagging case of elbow tendinitis that has me currently focusing on cardio things for a bit. But there's a bright to side to that too.

Nupstes and Trango Ice still available! Read above for details and price. And FYI, the goop on the Nupstes is leftover epoxy that was used to secure a pair of supergaiters. The leather and soles are in excellent condition. The only blemish is that the cloth eyelets in the bend of the ankle have torn out (Sportiva's cloth eyelets were a bad idea...) but I have used them many times without these and they tighten perfectly well. These are a good deal. I'm in Seattle and can meet evenings if interested.

Went up to try NY Gully today with AlpineDave and Chad Kellogg. We started kind of late and in snowfall, about 3-4" new, and wondering if the forecasted winds with this snow would turn the route into a spindrift disaster. But the approach was still easy with a good firm base, just a little postholing in the final couloir. The winds were not bad at all and nowhere near what had been forecasted, though the cold definitely moved in as the day went by. Chad and I had climbed NY together a few years ago, and Dave had climbed Pineapple, hence we knew better than to expect to find much if any real ice, but we were hoping for good neve. No such luck! The traverse pitch to reach the dead snag was mostly soft snow over rather loose rock- not particularly difficult climbing, but heady and requiring thoughtful movement and with uninspiring protection. Combined with the cold, it was not fast climbing conditions. It was after 12 by the time we were all at the snag; though the gully above looked pretty bony, it certainly looked worthwhile and fun, but it also seemed likely to be continued slow and we smelled a likely benighting on the horizon...so that coupled with the temps dropping (sniffle) and a forecast for frigid cold tonight (wahhh! ) we let ourselves turn tail and run home to dinner. Bottom line: it's good enough right now and worth going for it, but get going early in these short days and get ready to scratch, not swing!